Clinton boys basketball opens with win over Manchester

The Clinton High School boys basketball team defeated Manchester 62-39 in Monday night's non-conference season opener.

The story of the game was Manchester's 3-point shooting. The Flying Dutchmen caught fire in the first half and made six 3s, many of them from several feet outside of the 3-point line.

However, those that live by the 3-pointer will also die by the 3-pointer. In the second half, the Redskins began to pressure Manchester shooters no matter how far from the basket. This tactic worked for Clinton as Manchester only made another three 3s in the second half.

“A lot of the 3s in the first half were deep,” said Clinton coach Mike Ruhl. “We upped our defense pressure and refused to give them an uncontested shot from anywhere. I was very pleased with the team in the second half.”

The first quarter saw Clinton come out a bit slow. The Redskins performed well on offense, but on defense they allowed too many open 3-point attempts, and Manchester eventually began to capitalize.

“We came in prepared for a different type of game,” said Ruhl. “They came in and played traditional, and it caught us by surprise. I think we needed a bit to figure out how to defend them.”

Clinton's offense was powered by TJ Baker. Baker's ability to penetrate the Flying Dutchmen defense and use a jump-stop kept Clinton in the game. Baker, a junior, finished with 23 points in the game, 17 of them coming in the first half. Baker also led Clinton with 13 rebounds

“He was an All-State honorable mention as a sophomore,” Ruhl said. “He can rebound, post up, drive the ball -- he's a great player. He's a leader on the team. He sets the tone for us.”

With Clinton holding a slim 29-26 lead coming into the second half, the Clinton defense proceeded to shut down Manchester's offense. The Flying Dutchmen finished with only 13 points in the second half and did not make a 2-point field goal in the half.

While Manchester's shooting turned ice cold, the Redskins were able to benefit from every miss. Clinton's trio of big men -- Grant Clark, Ricky Miller and Devin Lillis -- controlled the boards and amassed second-chance points. The standout of the three was Clark, who finished with 16 points, 10 rebounds and three steals.

“Any time you can keep a possession alive and get points after a miss is a big help,” said Ruhl. “Grant is a rebounding machine and has a real nose for the ball.”

Clinton held a 15-point lead with three minutes to go, and the Flying Dutchman never came close to evening the score.

Marco Nunzi finished with eight points and three assists for the Redskins, while Lillis had four points and seven rebounds. Miller added six points.